Mission and objectives
UNDP works with the Government and people of Pakistan to develop local solutions to development challenges. In an evolving development context, we support Pakistan’s efforts to build a more equitable, prosperous, peaceful and resilient society, and to achieve its SDGs and COP25 targets. UNDP promotes transformational change by fostering strategic partnerships with national counterparts in the federal, provincial and regional governments, civil society, the private sector and the local and international community. UNDP supports transformational change by providing technical assistance focusing on developing capacity within national and local authorities, providing solutions with strong monitoring and evaluation tools, and delivering programmes with maximum efficiency, transparency and accountability. UNDP’s ultimate goal is to improve the lives of the people of Pakistan through keeping people out of poverty; governance for peaceful, just and inclusive societies; crisis prevention and increased resilience; nature-based solutions for development; clean affordable energy; and women's empowerment and gender equality.
Context
UNDP works to improve the lives of vulnerable communities, with the overarching objective of preventing loss of development gains, promoting human rights, and finding sustainable pathways to development. UNDP projects under the democratic governance portfolio aims to strengthen state institutions, support democratic development and the rule of law, ensure crisis prevention, support policy development, and integrate gender equality into all areas of work. UNDP works to support the human rights ecosystem by strengthening human rights institutions to promote and protect human rights for all. This UNV assignment is part of UNDP Pakistan’s Decentralization, Human Rights and Local Governance (DHL) project. The DHL project is a multi-sector project aimed at strengthening rights-based development, community stabilization, gender equality, and social inclusion across all regions and provinces of Pakistan. The core objective of the project is to ensure inclusive and equitable service delivery by providing technical assistance and capacity development support to relevant federal ministries, provincial line departments, statutory bodies, civil society, and private sector organizations. A key aim is to support the creation of an enabling environment for accelerated access to rights, people-centered justice, and people-centered security. The project focuses on institution building while connecting with vulnerable and at-risk communities to build trust between rights holders and duty bearers for inclusive, expeditious, and transparent access to rights and services. Under its human rights programme, UNDP-DHL has supported the National Commission for Human Rights (NCHR) to build its technical capacity at the federal and provincial levels for the fulfilment of its mandate as an autonomous national human rights institution and watchdog body. This support contributed to the NCHR's accreditation as a national human rights institution (NHRI) through the Global Alliance of National Human Rights Institutions (GANHRI) accreditation process. UNDP-DHL's support has included, for example, technical support for addressing human rights complaints, planning, legal review, grievance redressal mechanisms, international reporting obligations, and knowledge production. This has also included support to increase NCHR's visibility, awareness, and reach, establishing linkages with civil society organizations and regional and international NHRIs for the exchange of information and best practices. In May 2024, the NCHR was awarded ‘A status’ accreditation by GANHRI. This accreditation signifies the Commission's independence, authority, and status in the international human rights system. Achieving ‘A status’ also means the NCHR has a greater role in promoting and protecting human rights in Pakistan and requires ongoing support to strengthen its ability to fulfil its mandate and maintain its accreditation, particularly in its provincial offices. The incumbent UNV will be stationed at the NCHR Head Office in Islamabad and will be responsible for supporting the Commission by strengthening its communications and advocacy efforts. The Communications Officer will play a critical role in enhancing the visibility and impact of NCHR’s human rights initiatives.
Task description

• Support the NCHR in strategic communications planning

• Design, develop and implement comprehensive communication strategies and plans to advance NCHR’s human rights initiatives.

• Develop a consultative, comprehensive communications plan for NCHR

• Collaborate across all departments to align communication efforts with broader organizational goals.

• Lead daily coordination with the NCHR provincial offices on activities, investigations, and events in each province. Prominent activities may be shared via social media platforms or news outlets.

• Coordinate closely with NCHR officers and thematic leads to ensure streamlined communication efforts on key priority areas.

• Develop and manage human rights content to enhance the visibility and impact of the NCHR’s initiatives

• Collaborate closely with the graphic designer to produce high quality content for the Commission’s various social media platforms, including but not limited to Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Youtube, and Linkedin

• Develop and manage social media campaigns to raise awareness about human rights issues.

• Monitor social media channels, respond to inquiries, and track engagement metrics.

• Coordinate closely with the graphic designer to produce high quality visuals and multimedia materials for NCHR’s various reports and communications materials

• Develop high quality press releases and articles regarding NCHR’s human rights initiatives

• Build and maintain a database of NCHR’s communications materials for its initiatives

• Ensure all content is accurate, timely, and aligned with international messaging standards and human rights principles.

• Map key international days, focused on those related to human rights, and develop key messages on those themes for the NCHR. Coordinate closely with provincial offices and with the UNDP EU Human Rights Programme team to ensure key messages are aligned.

• Establish partnerships and open channels of communication.

• Develop and maintain strong relationships and strategic linkages with national and international media outlets to promote human rights initiatives and advocacy

• Build and maintain a database of media contacts for the NCHR. Regularly disseminate information on key activities and initiatives of the Commission.

• Develop and maintain strong relationships and strategic linkages with civil society organizations (CSOs), human rights defenders, community leaders, and other relevant stakeholders to streamline communication of the Commission’s activities and duties.

• Coordinate closely with the Communications and Reporting Officer UNDP and the NHRIs focal point on joint activities, advocacy, and events.

• Facilitate close communication and coordination with the EU Human Rights Programme team at UNDP for joint initiatives to protect and promote human rights

• Facilitate knowledge and capacity building, knowledge sharing and advocacy relevant to the assigned thematic area(s).

• Plan and organize events, including press conferences, briefings, trainings, report launches, public forums related to human rights issues etc.

• Prepare visibility materials such as standees, backdrops and handouts, and oversee media coverage of events.

• Ensure that adequate photographs are taken at all NCHR events and meetings. Manage storage of photographs and information about meetings.

• Coordinate closely with NCHR’s provincial coordinators in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Sindh, Punjab, and Balochistan and maintain a record of NCHR’s provincial activities and initiatives

• Lead the development of the NCHR Annual Report through regular consultation with provincial offices and the information collected throughout the year

• Coordinate closely with the research team to develop strategies for the dissemination of knowledge products

• Participate in knowledge networks and consultations with international organizations and CSOs.

• Collaborate with relevant partners, stakeholders, and UNDP to raise awareness, engage in policy dialogues, and advocate for meaningful change.